Luminosity
by Anaieli Tynsto
Summary: Rey's life is pretty mundane. She goes to school, comes home, and does her homework, only to wake up and do the same thing all over the next day. That is, until one fateful night in October of 1939. AU. A historical take on Star Wars. Rated T for now, will be changed to M in the future.
1. October 10, 1939

**Hey everyone! This is one of the first fan fictions that I have ever written, so please have some pity on me! I'm not studying English Lit., Journalism, Creative Writing, etc. I'm currently getting my degree in a polar opposite field, but I use writing as a way to express all of the chaos that is going on inside of my head. Well, before this becomes drawn out, I do not own Star Wars (however, that would be pretty badass...).**

 **FYI: I understand that I am not the best writer in the world, and I hope by writing stories such as this, my writing will improve over time. English is my first language, and starting in sixth grade through the rest of middle and high school, I was placed in AP English classes. I like to think I'm a pretty decent writer, but I understand there is still so much more to learn. I hope y'all can understand if I sound a bit rusty!**

 **For the sake of this story, Rey is 16 and Ben is 18. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't want to hear it.**

 **Okay, it's time to get onto the story. Sit back, relax, grab yourself a nice cup of tea or coffee, and enjoy!**

 **Oh, and all of this is from Rey's point of view. It might change in the future, dunno yet. I'll see how it goes.**

* * *

Tuesday, October 10, 1939.

That was the day I met him.

It was a relatively grim day throughout the city of Chicago. Clouds aimlessly draped themselves over the landscape. It was one of those mornings where it looked like it was going to rain, but the clouds just would not allow it. Crimson, yellow, and orange leaves dotted the ground. With each gentle breeze, the leaves were pushed gracefully into the sky until they made themselves a home safely on the ground until the next gust of wind came along.

On this day, like any other day, I could be found sitting in a desk at school listening to teachers nag on about equations and subjects that would never aid me in my adult life. Half the time, I thought I was just wasting my life away in school learning about useless things such as geometry because I would never become an engineer or an architect.

It was around half past one when I found myself, yet again, sitting at a desk in my least favorite class, chemistry. Not going to lie, I wish that I had a more riveting class to end my school day with. Thankfully, one of my best friends, Kaydel, sat next to me during these 45 minutes of pure torture. I watched outside the window as the sun relentlessly tried to peek through the autumn gray clouds.

All of a sudden, a small note appeared on my desk and snapped me out of my daydreaming.

"Did you hear?" it said written in Kaydel's loopy cursive. I was always so jealous of how beautiful her handwriting was.

"Hear what?" I wrote on the back of the piece of paper before flicking it onto her desk.

"There's going to be a rumble tonight between us and Central. Do you want to go?"

I looked at her surprised, although I shouldn't have been.

Both of our schools had a very long tradition of strongly disliking each other.

Actually, it was more of a love-hate kind of relationship. Each winter, both of our schools would hold an annual bake sale. The proceeds would go to the local food pantry for those who were still recovering from the economic crisis that occurred nearly a decade prior.

At each bake sale, the students, parents, and faculty were civil with each other for the entire weekend. But once the cookies, cakes, and pastries vanished from the tables, so did our hostilities toward each other.

The Friday before last was the homecoming football game between our two schools and it seems like some people did not like the outcome.

"Sure, I have nothing else to do tonight." I wrote back and handed it to her.

She nodded and then went back to paying attention to the board. Again, my gaze drifted back to the leaves outside of the window.

The rumble was set to take place at eight o'clock later that night. After school, Kaydel and I walked home together like we always did. As we strode along, we talked about the same petty gossip that everyone else was talking about during the day at the school. But the rumble was the main topic of our conversation.

For my high school, there was only one person suitable for the rumble against Central. His name was Zekk Novin, Kaydel's boyfriend. Zekk was built like a freight train, and was six foot one inches tall. Not only was he the size of a bus, but he had an attitude to match his immense size.

Well, at least everyone at school thought so.

But Kaydel and I both knew he could be a real softie at times, especially during that certain time of the month when Kaydel transformed from a sweet and cuddley teddy bear, and into a Tasmanian devil. He would often bring her flowers or chocolates to cheer her up, which always seemed to brighten her day. Although it was quite adorable, I could not help but roll my eyes. Sometimes, deep down, I wished I had someone of my own who would bring me sweets when I was feeling under the weather. But once I began those thoughts, I quickly chased them away.

Zekk is the most skilled and talented player on our football team and has a history of being a force to be reckoned with. Currently, he is one of the best players within the state of Illinois, and many colleges have began to take notice in the newly rising star. Zekk and Kaydel have been steady for around two years now and it was obvious they would eventually marry each other since they are two peas in a pod.

And then there was me, feeling as though I was the only person on the planet that was single. Of course, I didn't always mind this. Boys meant drama. And that was one thing I didn't like.

Drama.

After the normal ten minute walk back to my house, I gave Kaydel a quick hug before parting ways with her. From there, I slowly made my way up the steps to the front door and proceeded to open it before walking into the hallway towards the kitchen.

"Good afternoon, my beautiful Rey! How was your day?" Ahsoka beamed with a wide pearly white smile while I turned the corner into the kitchen. She was starting to prep for dinner, like she did around this time every single day.

"It was fine, just an average day of misery," I smiled back as I grabbed an apple off the kitchen counter and washed it off in the sink.

"You always have a way of making it seem more dreadful than it actually was."

"What can I say? It's my speciality." I chuckled a bit before taking a bite of my apple, "I have to go finish a paper for my English class that is due on Friday."

"Alright, have fun with that."

"Oh, it's going to be a blast." I replied with a wink before heading up to my room and settling down at the typewriter.

Around half past seven, Kaydel came over to pick me up. The temperature had drastically decreased over the course of the day and was hovering just above freezing. Before heading out the door, I put on one of my favorite knitted scarves that Ahsoka had made for me several winters ago, mittens, and my newest burgundy plush coat which had just been delivered from a Sears catalog.

Kaydel and I walked a couple of blocks until we found the alley the rumble was taking place in. People from both schools were crammed into the narrow passageway. This alley in particular was different from others within the area. It was completely out of the view of the main streets, a hint that people did not want the police getting involved this time.

Since Kaydel's boyfriend was the posterboy of our school, we were able to make our way towards the front of the crowd. After what seemed to be an eternity, we were able to ease our way towards the opening of the crowd. Even though the temperature was around thirty five degrees, Zekk had his shirt off to show off his immense muscles to intimidate his opponent. He was standing near other members of the football team, obviously planning a strategy of some sorts.

Kaydel looked at me nervously and then at Zekk.

"He's going to be fine. Don't worry Kaydel." I whispered in her ear and smiled.

She nodded reassuringly and grabbed my hand.

On the other side of the alley was an individual I had never seen before in my life. He was around the same height as Zekk and was of similar build, but slightly leaner. He was surrounded by individuals who were wearing Central letterman jackets in what seemed to be like a pep talk. Once the talk was over, they patted his shoulder while he took off his shirt before turning around. He handed the shirt off to one of the other football players before walking into the circle.

My eyes widened a bit at the new view in front of me. The man was certainly different from others I had seen in my life. His ears and nose were bigger than normal, and his face was framed by thick, dark hair. But what caught me were his eyes, two brown orbs that glistened in the moonlight. Somehow once all of these characteristics were put together, he was actually pretty good looking. I was instantly intrigued.

Once I sprung back into reality, I elbowed Kaydel, "Who's that fighting for Central?"

"Oh him? That's Ben Solo." she replied.

"Never heard of him."

She looked quite surprised, "You've never heard of Ben Solo? Every girl within the city of Chicago has heard of Ben Solo."

I shrugged, "Well I guess I'm one of those girls who has never heard of him before."

"Let it stay that way," she quickly replied without going any further.

Right at eight o'clock sharp, one of the football players from our school walked into the middle of the circle between Zekk and Ben.

"I want this to be a clean fight. No funny business. Got it?" he said while looking back and forth at both of them.

Both Zekk and Ben nodded before touching fists. Then, each of them stepped back a few yards. They began to circle each other like vultures around a fresh kill, waiting to see who would strike first.

Kaydel squeezed my hand while the first punch was thrown.

Zekk's fist landed right on Ben's nose.

A few seconds later, a trickle of blood started to flow down his face. Ben wiped his hand against his nose, looked down at it, and shook his head.

"You're going to regret that," he huffed to Zekk, with a new found rage in his eyes. He moved forward quickly, sending a punch into the side of Zekk's head. Zekk stumbled back a bit, and Ben took this opportunity and grabbed Zekk's shoulders. As soon as he got a considerable grip, Ben began to knee Zekk in the stomach.

The crowd began to roar with excitement.

Pure horror stretched over Kaydel's face. I squeezed her hand because I too was nervous about the potential outcome.

Zekk tried his best to get Ben off of him, but Ben would not be easily persuaded. After a few moments, Zekk was able to shake him off. He wiped the blood from his brow and spat onto the ground.

A smile sneaked its way across Ben's face.

"You're doing an awful job trying to impress your lady friend over there, Zekkie."

Laughter filled the other side of the alley.

Zekk clenched his fist, turning his knuckles white, "How dare you bring her into this, Solo."

"Aww… Did I hurt your feelings?" Ben questioned with the same smile written all over his features.

Before Ben could say more, Zekk threw a punch which found a home on the side of Ben's temple. Shaken a bit, Ben was able to recover within several moments.

They continued to circle each other.

Even in the cold, each of them had sweat raining down from their foreheads.

Ben's slicked back hair began to drape itself in front of his eyes. Even so, he intently kept his gaze upon Zekk.

In a split second, Ben threw a fake out punch which Zekk fell for. With what seemed like the power of twenty men, Ben quickly jabbed three left and right hooks into the side of Zekk's face until he collapsed.

Zekk laid on the cold ground, coughing up blood because of a newly broken tooth and punctured lip. Members of our football team rushed over to him while members of Central's team pulled Ben away from the nearly unconscious man. Zekk continued to lay there, trying his best to catch his breath. After what seemed like several minutes, Zekk was able to compose himself, and stood up uneasily.

He made his way over to Ben and reached out with his hand.

"I gotta hand it to ya, I didn't know you had it in ya, Solo," Zekk stated while Ben grabbed ahold of his hand. Zekk quickly moved Ben closer to him so that his ear was near his mouth, "But don't ever bring a woman into this again. Do you understand?" Zekk snapped with a raspy voice before bringing his green eyes on Ben's.

Ben looked into his, shook his hand, and nodded, "Fine by me, Zekkie. Just because your school won its first game against us in eight years does not mean that you can run your mouths all over the city insulting us. Remember that next time one of you decides to flap your gums."

Zekk nodded in agreeance and let go of Ben's hand. He turned around and inched back over to his fellow teammates. A concerned Kaydel followed in pursuit.

I stood off to the side, because I was all too familiar with being the third wheel when Kaydel and Zekk were with each other. The sky had begun to clear up, and the moon was starting to shine down onto the damp ground. But the same freezing cold air lingered.

I crossed my arms and puffed myself up in an attempt to stay warm. Just as I did when I was little, I let some air escape from my mouth, and watched as the air turned into a fine cloud of mist.

While waiting for Kaydel to finish up with Zekk, out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Ben had turned around once putting his shirt back on and was heading towards my direction. I looked around my peripheral vision, and noticed I was the only individual in the direction that he was heading. Before I could react, his towering height was standing in front of me.

He smiled down at me with a crooked grin, "Hello. I don't believe that we've ever had the privilege of meeting each other. My name is Ben."

"I know your name, Ben Solo..." I said while looking up into his dark colored eyes.

A minuscule moment of silence stretched between us.

"I believe this is the time in which you tell me your name," He stated with a slight sarcastic tone in his voice.

I tried to keep my composure, "My name is Rey."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Rey," he responded while blood continued to drip down from his nose.

I laughed under my breath and held out a handkerchief, "And to you as well. You do realize that your nose is bleeding right?"

He snickered somewhat and nodded while grabbing the cloth before pressing it to his considerably large nose, "Yes, Miss Rey, I'm aware. Quite frankly, I believe it's broken. I can barely breathe out of my left nostril."

"Well... Ben Solo, it must be your lucky day. I've taken a few classes on first aid, and can pop that right back into it's place. It would at least save you a trip to the hospital."

"Okay… I guess I'll have to trust you," He answered while glancing over at his friends and then back down at me. From there, he proceeded to lower his face down to my level. I could hear the roar of laughter from members of the Central football team from across the way.

"Don't worry, it won't hurt too much..." I chimed while placing my fingers over the handkerchief and his nose, "Ready? One.. two…" and before I said three, my fingers cracked his nose back into its correct position.

Ben let out a low grunt and gritted his teeth while drawing in a sharp breath.

"Maybe a heads up next time? And I thought you said it wasn't going to hurt."

I smirked, "Oops… I guess I lied."

He continued to hold the handkerchief up to his nose to catch the remaining blood and proceeded to look down into my eyes.

"How about you and I go out sometime?" he coaxed with an obvious grin underneath the once white and now burgundy colored cloth.

"And what makes you think that I would ever want to go on a date with you?"

"Because I saw you nearly pass out as soon as I turned around without my shirt on," he emphasized while removing the handkerchief from his face and wiping away the remaining caked on blood before putting the cloth into his back pocket.

"And your point is?" I retorted, starting to get ever so slightly annoyed by his presence.

"My point is... I'll pick you up Saturday evening, at six. Sound good?"

I couldn't help but let out a laugh, "What a line, do you use that on all of the girls?"

"Only the feisty ones." He winked and smiled, "I'll see you Saturday, Miss Rey."

"Oh you will?" I scoffed.

"Mhm. I definitely will." His deep-voice was laced with utter self-confidence.

This man. I could already tell he was going to be difficult to deal with.

"I think you're forgetting something," He stated while wrapping his arms together.

"And what is that?"

"Your address."

I rolled my eyes and let out a defeated sigh while reaching into my clutch and bringing out an old wad of paper. From there, I scribbled my address onto the wrinkled sliver of parcement before handing it over to him.

I narrowed my eyes up at him, "Happy now?"

His eyes lit up, and for a second I thought he was playing me before responding, "Words cannot even begin to describe the pure joy that is radiating throughout my entire being."

"You should become a poet."

He instantly lit up, "Really?"

"No."

I pressed my lips together before grinning and releasing a belly laugh.

Now his eyes narrowed on me before a substantial laugh escaped from his mouth.

After a moment he looked down at the piece of paper and then back at me, "Remember, Saturday evening. Six sharp."

And before I could respond, Ben started heading towards his pack of Neanderthals, also commonly known as high school football players.

I looked back over at him. He had put his letterman jacket back on and was getting ready to leave. As he began to walk away, he looked back over his shoulder and smiled with the same crooked grin. I returned the favor while my face began to flush.

At the same moment, Kaydel came over to me.

"Did someone catch your eye Rey? You're as bright as a tomato!" she laughed.

I nodded and smiled.

"Who's the lucky man?" she asked.

"I'm sure you could take a guess."

"Rey, I swear if it's Ben Solo…"

I nodded again.

"For God sakes Rey! What did he say to you?"

A shy smile spread across my face, "He asked me on a date."

"For the love of everything that's Holy you have to be joking." Kaydel hissed while rolling her eyes.

"What?! What's wrong with him? He seems like a pretty nice fellow."

"A nice fellow? I don't believe that word is even in Ben's vocabulary," she proceeded to grab my shoulders while looking into my eyes, "Don't get yourself involved with Ben Solo"

"Why?"

"Because he's bad news. Please, for once, don't be as stubborn as a bull and listen to me."

"I'll take your thoughts into consideration Kaydel. There's no need to worry about me" I beckoned while hugging her.

She hugged me back.

I checked my watch.

"I should be heading back home. Ahsoka will be wondering where I am, I'll see you tomorrow at school."

She nodded and started making her way back towards Zekk.

I began my way back to my house, which happened to only be a few streets over. As I walked, there was only one thing on my mind and his name was Ben Solo. My stomach was full of butterflies with the thought of having a date a few days away, but I could not help but wonder.

Why was Kaydel warning me about him?

Why did he have a reputation around the area that we lived in yet I had never heard of him before?

As I got ready for bed, thoughts raced through my mind about the events of the day. Trying to push them aside, as I laid down and brought the sheets up to my chin, the only thing that came to me was the encounter with Ben. While drifting away, I smiled, knowing that I would be able to see him again in a few days.

* * *

 **Phew! The first chapter is over. Thank you so much for reading! If you liked it, please let me know! I need some momentum to keep going, so any bit of encouragement will help! :)**


	2. October 14, 1939 Pt I

**First, I just want to start off by saying thank you to everyone who has commented so far, and to all of my new followers. Each and every one of you are putting a smile on my face!**

 **Secondly, some of you might be wondering: are other members of Star Wars going to be in this? And the answer is: YES! I plan on adding all of our beloved favorites into the story eventually. I have big plans for this, and can only hope to stay motivated to see it all the way through.**

 ****Ages of characters might be different from Star Wars canon****

 **As always, sit back, relax, and enjoy! :)**

 **(P.S.A) This chapter is once again from Rey's POV. In future chapters, I might switch between Ben's and Rey's POV. Dunno, still debating it ;)**

* * *

Saturday, October 14, 1939 | Part I

Today was the day.

Ben would be here at six o'clock.

I'd be lying if I said I wasn't anxious. Actually, I was pretty terrified.

Of course, I've been on dates in the past. But that's only what they were, dates. None of them blossomed into a potential relationship.

Kaydel once teased and said that it was my fault. Little did she know that I took it to heart.

I've been known to have a mind of my own, and many men have not been able to wrap their heads around a strong, independent, and capable women. Nonetheless, I always hoped there would be that one fish in the sea who would accept my strengths, whereas others had persecuted them.

Maybe one day.

Slowly, I creeped out of my bed and opened the curtains while releasing an annoyed sigh.

Great.

Rain.

Not only just rain.

But pouring rain.

That was the last thing I wanted to deal with today.

There goes two potential outfits I could have worn straight out the window.

Once the annoyance left, I stepped down the rickety Victorian staircase before turning into the kitchen to prepare my usual breakfast: oatmeal with brown sugar and a cup of hot tea.

"Good morning my Rey of sunshine," Ahsoka chirped while planting a kiss on the back of my head.

When I was around three months old, I was found alone on Michigan Avenue. There I was, in an old shoe box, saved by a police officer who was making his rounds on an early morning in mid-March of 1923. I didn't have any personal belongings except for a yellow wool-blanket, a snug brown jumper, a light blue knitted hat, and stockings which barely fit around my chunky legs. Safety-pinned to the blanket I was wrapped in was a sheet of paper which roughly translated to:

 _To Whom It May Concern,_

 _Hello! My name is Rey and my birth parents tried their best to provide for me. However, they hope I will find a family that could give me a future that they could never possibly provide_. _Have a blessed day._

I still have the note in my jewelry box and despite it having multiple grammatical and spelling errors, it's still one of my most prized possessions.

From there, I was placed up for adoption in one of the many orphanages within the city limits of Chicago. Within two months time, I was adopted by a widow named Ahsoka Tano. Ahsoka's husband was a prominent engineer and developer of many patented structures which were and still are being used in the manufacturing of skyscrapers not only in Chicago, but around the United States as well. Despite never being a smoker, Ahsoka's husband tragically died after a long and strenuous battle with lung cancer. Since her husband did not have any living relatives, Ahsoka inherited his entire estate and fortune as stated in his last will and testament.

The two of them always wanted to start a family together, but after many years of trying and several appointments with prominent physicians, Ahsoka was told it would be impossible for her to conceive. With her newly inherited fortune, she decided her new goal in life was to give a child who had and came from absolutely nothing, everything in the world that they could ever need. So there she found herself, at the ripe age of thirty-eight, adopting an infant to lovingly dote upon.

My childhood was nothing less than picturesque. From a young age, I developed a love for all animals, especially horses. Big ones, small ones, brown ones, black ones, white ones, fat ones, skinny ones. It didn't matter, I loved them all. Ahsoka picked up on this, and in return, each weekend, we would take a train an hour outside of the city to a privately owned ranch, where I would spend the entire day riding compact sized horses while Ahsoka snapped pictures on her newly acquired Kodak camera.

When the weekends faded away, my days were filled with what seemed like an endless stream of classes. I wasn't entirely keen on school, but Ahsoka always emphasized the importance of a quality education. So, each and every day, I reluctantly got out of bed, squirmed myself into a freshly pressed uniform, ate a somewhat healthy breakfast, and then headed out the back door towards the model-T which Ahsoka drove me to school in every single day. She was often criticized for operating a car, since it was seen to be a man's job. But Ahsoka would kindly dismiss their remarks, since she was an independent soul.

My life seemed to be perfect up until October 24, 1929.

From that moment on, it seemed like everything began to fall apart.

The stock market crashed.

Within the next few weeks and months, many of my friends were leaving the neighborhood and dropping out of school.

As a six year old, I had the right to be confused.

Why were my friends disappearing into what seemed to be thin air?

Ahsoka went on to tell me with the best of her ability what was occurring within the country, how many people had lost their money overnight, and how they had to leave the city to try and find reliable work.

Thankfully, Ahsoka was one of the few people who did not trust in banks, and left most of her fortune in multiple safes which were under tight surveillance in the basement behind several locks and keys.

We were able to keep our house, but from then on we tried our best to live a modest lifestyle. Ahsoka did not want to flaunt our wealth, in fear that desperate people would target our home and raid our belongings.

And still to this day, we have continued to live modestly, only purchasing materials and supplies when absolutely necessary.

Although the Great Depression was nearing its timely demise, Ahsoka and I had become accustomed to living in our old ways, and did not plan on changing them anytime soon.

So here we are, living each day as it comes.

Enjoying every moment that we can.

"Good morning," I replied while pouring raw oats and water into a saucepan and then placing it on the stove.

"A little birdy told me that you have a date tonight, is that so?"

"Is that birdy's name Kaydel?"

"Perhaps…" Ahsoka quietly whispered while pouring herself a new cup of tea.

My cheeks started to heat up as I nodded, "Well, that birdy is correct."

"Ah, yes. Another boy to give the famous pep talk to," she winked while bumping me gently with her hip before darting across the room.

I stirred my oatmeal in the pot before looking across the kitchen at her, "No, no, no. Please. This one might actually have potential."

She raised her arms in defense, "Darling... I have to let him know not to mess with Mama bear."

I let out a frustrated half laugh while pouring my oatmeal into a porcelain glazed bowl and settling down in my usual seat at the end of our kitchen table. Ahsoka sat down next to me before putting on her glasses to begin whisking through the Chicago Tribune.

After a few minutes of reading, the silence was broken by Ahsoka, "So, have you decided what you're going to wear this evening?"

I shrugged, "Well, the weather is ruining all of my current choices. Also, I cannot forget to mention that my date did not inform me as to where he is taking me tonight, so we could be going to the moon for all I know."

Ahsoka's eyebrows squinted together, an indication she was deep in thought. Soon after, her soulful blue-eyes widened and a grin made its way across her wrinkled face.

"I know what you should wear. The navy dress with the white polka dots."

Rey looked up from the oatmeal towards her adoptive mother.

The navy dress, of course!

It had been several months since she wore it out in public. It was casual, but classy and practical at the same time.

"Yes! That's a perfect choice."

She beamed, "And curl your hair. You know, the special way you kids do it nowadays."

I rolled my eyes before glancing over at her, "Mom…"

She relentlessly continued while she clapped her hands together, "Oh! My goodness, you cannot forget to wear a nice shade of red lipstick as well. Bright lips are in this season."

"Mom…"

"But do NOT wear white pumps, they will certainly get dirty with all of these puddles lining the sidewalks. Maybe go with a nice but you know not TOO nice pair of brown or black pumps."

"Mom…"

"Stockings! You absolutely cannot leave this house without wearing some proper stockings to keep yourself warm. You are as thin as a whippet and I'd hate to see you catch a cold, or even worse pneumonia."

"MOM!" I blurted, shooting her an annoyed look.

"What?!" She exclaimed while sipping on her coffee and looking towards me.

I got up from the table, picked up my bowl and teacup before placing them in the sink, "You're doing it again."

"Doing what?"

"Blabbering and being snippy."

Her eyes widened a bit before giving a shy smile, "Sorry my dear... I get carried away sometimes."

Before heading out of the kitchen, I placed a kiss on the top of her once auburn but now graying hair before giving her a tender hug.

"It's okay. I love you even when you babble, Mrs. Snips."

* * *

The hours seemed to pass at a snail's pace, and it did not help that I needed to finish some school work before this evening came around.

 **Eleven o'clock.** Began working on organic chemistry.

 **Noon.** Continue dying while working on organic chemistry and then have a twenty minute break to eat a chicken sandwich while contemplating the meaning of life and debating whether or not to become a high school dropout.

 **One o'clock.** Officially see your will to live slowly crumble while working on organic chemistry practice problems.

 **Two o'clock.** Congrats, I've finished organic chemistry and now can move onto something more riveting like geometry.

 **Three o'clock.** Currently sitting at my desk wanting to slam my head into a brick wall because I could care less about the properties of a parallelogram.

Once seeing the clock strike four o'clock, I quickly slam all of my books shut and ram them underneath my bed.

I take a quick bath to freshen myself up before heading over to my vanity to begin prepping my face. Slowly but surely, I put a minimal amount of makeup onto my face. A few strokes of mascara on my lashes and a hint of powder and blush. When finished, I finally top it all off with a lovely shade of bright red lipstick.

Ahsoka had always taught me that less is more when it came to makeup, and she was certainly right.

From there, I began to curl my hair so it framed my face nicely. I pinned several strands back, forming even more softer curls. When I was satisfied with how it looked, I smiled in the mirror to make sure that I had not gotten any lipstick onto my teeth. From there, I headed towards the closet to fetch my dress. Once I neared the doors to my closet, I could hear the doorbell ring.

I quickly looked over my shoulder at a clock sitting on my desk.

5:45.

Really?

Fifteen minutes early?

At least he's punctual.

If he's going to arrive THIS early, then he can most certainly wait.

But of course, I began to eavesdrop as soon as I heard conversation coming from downstairs.

* * *

Upon hearing the doorbell ring, Ahsoka got up from her favorite couch within the parlor, straightened up her skirt and blouse before heading towards the door. She opened it with her famous pearly white smile.

"Hello, my name is Ben. I'm here to pick up Rey for this evening," the man stated confidently while sporting a crooked grin.

"Ah. Yes, Ben. Please come in," Ahsoka motioned towards the parlor and closed the door behind him.

"Is there anything I can get for you, a drink? Coffee, water, tea, perhaps?" Ahsoka offered with gentleness in her deep-blue eyes.

He nodded while giving a kind smile in return, "Yes ma'am, water sounds great."

"Take a seat, she may be a little while longer. I'll be right back with your water."

When she turned her back, Ben took this newly found opportunity to gaze across the parlor and into the rest of the house which was in his immediate view. At first he was taken back by the minimal but lavish furnishings that found refuge in the quaint Victorian house. In more ways than one, it was vastly different from the place he called home.

Ben took a step closer to the fireplace mantel, where he found a photograph of what looked to be Rey as a toddler. The slightly chunky child was holding a baby bunny, a kitten, and a gosling within her small arms with one of the cheekiest grins he had ever seen. He smiled to himself contently before taking a seat on one of the plush couches.

Around a minute later, Ahsoka came in holding a tray with a glass of water and a cup of tea for herself.

"I hope you don't mind lemon in your water. We always think it freshens up the drink," she stated as she handed over the glass.

Ben shook his head while grabbing it, "Lemon doesn't bother me at all. Thank you."

She smiled and took a small sip. The pair sat quietly for several moments enjoying their drinks before Ahsoka broke the ice.

"Now Ben, I want to let you know that I am a widow. Rey's father passed right before she arrived. Because of this, I have to be a father figure from time to time, especially when it comes to her dating life. I hope you can understand?" As she finished her sentence, Ahsoka took a sip of her tea before looking across the room into his brown eyes.

He nodded in response, "Of course, I understand."

"Great! So you understand that if you harm my daughter, I will not hesitate to cut off one of your favorite appendages."

Ben nearly choked on his water before looking back at her completely and utterly shocked at what just came out of her mouth.

"Excuse me, ma'am?"

"I know you heard me loud and clear. So, Mr. Ben, do you understand?"

He sat there completely speechless for several moments before nervously clearing his throat, "I hear you loud and clear, ma'am."

Her eyes beamed once more, "Wonderful! I knew you were a smart boy."

He gave her a hesitant smile while fixing the tie around his neck and taking another sip of the lemon water.

* * *

 _This is definitely going to be an interesting night to say the least..._ He thought to himself.

* * *

 **Yay! Chapter two is now over. Y'all thought I was going to go straight into the date, didn't ya? Tisk tisk. Anyway, let me know what you think! If you liked it, please leave a review, and maybe send it to one of your friends? Dunno, just a thought.**

 **As always, thank you for reading! :)**


	3. October 14, 1939 Pt II

**Chapter three is finally here! Sorry for the delay, life can become pretty hectic sometimes! Also, I got into a little bit of a writer's block. Whoopsie.**

 **Thank you to all of the reviews, favorites, and follows this story has gotten thus far. Y'all never cease to amaze me.**

 **As always, I hope y'all enjoy!**

 **(P.S.A) I'm spicing it up this chapter with a little bit of 3** **rd** **Person-POV. Still deciding which type of POV I want to use for this story.**

* * *

Saturday, October 14, 1939 | Part II

Once it finally reached six o'clock, Rey decided to head downstairs to save Ben from Ahsoka's ongoing interrogations.

She placed her hand on the doorknob, took a deep breath, and then proceeded to open it. As she walked through the hallway and towards the winding Victorian staircase, the pumps she was wearing started to make the sound of their people.

Upon hearing the pitter-patter of Rey's pumps, Ahsoka and Ben turned their gazes out of the parlor and towards the staircase.

"Looks like Rey is ready to grace us with her presence," Ahsoka trumpeted with a blissful grin before getting up from her chair and heading towards the foyer of the house.

Rey slowly made her way down the rickety staircase, with each step seeming to make more noise than the last. In that moment she did not know which was louder, her pumps or her frantic heartbeat. Finally, when Rey rounded the one curve in the staircase, her eyes instantly locked onto Ben's. He had the same crooked looking grin on his face like he had at the rumble, and it made Rey's heart soar.

"Doesn't she look lovely, Ben?" Ahsoka's blue eyes sparkled as she looked upon her adoptive daughter.

Ben nodded in response while maintaining eye contact with Rey before becoming slightly flushed, "I think lovely is an understatement."

Her eyes widened instantly at the compliment before a large goofy grin appeared on her face as well, "Thank you, Ben."

This evening, Ben was sporting a navy colored blazer with dark brown slacks. Underneath was a white collared shirt with a spiffy looking tie to bring the whole outfit together. Draping off his left arm was his trench coat, which was of a darker brown shade.

His broken nose was healing quite nicely, and the bruise was starting to fade ever so slightly. Still, he looked more menacing than he actually was. One of the first things she noticed since their last visit was that he got a haircut. His longer locks were gone, but his dark hair was still slicked back with pomade. Nevertheless, he looked very charming and handsome.

"Shall we?" Ben said while motioning towards the door.

Rey smiled and put on her burgundy puffed coat before giving Ahsoka a hug and a kiss on the cheek, "As always, I will be back by midnight."

A small smile made it's way across Ahsoka's face before she turned towards Ben, causing her expression to disappear, "Remember what will happen if you hurt my daughter."

He straightened up before speaking with reassurance in his deep voice, "Don't worry ma'am, I'll take good care of her."

Before leaving the foyer, Ben put on his dark colored trench coat and then opened the ancient mahogany door. As both of them headed out of the house, Rey was happy to see that the rain had finally stopped for the day. She breathed a sigh of relief.

That was one of the things that Rey hated the most, the rain. She loved when the sun was shining bright over the city. During those types of days, Rey could be found on the front porch, sipping on some sweet-tea while reading Jane Eyre. However, those types of days would start to become limited as autumn turned into winter. At times, Chicago was one of the most miserable places on the planet, or at least that is what some of the citizens of the great city thought. Although it had a history of being dubbed, "The Windy City," Rey thought it should be renamed to, "The City that Doesn't Seem to Get Sunlight 9 Months of the Year." One time when she was around eight years old during the height of the Great Depression, she thought about contacting the Mayor of Chicago to get the nickname changed. But as she sat down at her desk with an inkwell pen and paper, she decided it would be a silly thing to write the Mayor about when there were children who were starving on the streets.

Rey was brought back to reality when she heard the sound of jingling coming out of Ben's pockets. In his large hands, he held a pair of keys.

Rey looked at them and then up at him, "What are those for?"

Ben laughed a little, "For my truck."

Rey instantly perked up, "You have a truck? I've never ridden in one before."

He looked down at her and smiled before heading onto the sidewalk, "Yes, she's one of my pride and joys."

From there, Rey and Ben walked down the sidewalk, and every so often Ben helped Rey over fairly large puddles that had formed due to the heavy rainfall. After around forty-five seconds of walking, a forest green 1933 Ford pickup truck came into view.

"Here she is," Ben gleamed with admiration before unlocking the passenger side and opening the door for Rey.

Rey looked the pickup truck over before making her way into the vehicle. It had several spots of rust on it, but Rey was able to tell that it was very well taken care of. After closing the door behind Rey, Ben made his way over to the driver's side and slipped in next to her before putting the keys into the ignition.

"So, where are you taking me?" Rey questioned while looking over at the dark haired man sitting next to her.

"It's a surprise," He smirked.

"Really? Not even one hint?"

"Nope," he stated while turning the key and causing the engine to roar to life.

"The movies?"

"Nope."

"The diner?"

"Nope."

"The moon?"

"Sadly, no."

Rey started to become slightly agitated because she was someone who was not overly fond of surprises. For Rey's tenth birthday, Ahsoka planned a surprise birthday party, and it ended up being a complete and utter disaster. From then on, surprises, no matter the scale, were not Rey's favorite thing in the world.

Putting the truck into gear, the vehicle started to move forward towards their destination. Where? Rey had absolutely no idea. He could be kidnapping her for all she knew. He did seem to have a reputation after all.

A reputation for what?

Again, something she had no idea.

Rey began twiddling her thumbs and looked out of the window to her right. Although the rain had stopped, it was still a gloomy October day in Chicago. She almost shuddered at the thought that the weather would be like this until around May. Why did she have to live in the Midwest where the sun barely showed itself? After contemplating moving to Florida where the sun shined all year around, she looked down at Ben's right hand, which every so often changed the gear to make the truck either go faster or slower.

"Having fun?" Ben mused while looking over at her.

Rey almost jumped at hearing his voice for the first time in several minutes, "What?"

"You're looking at my hand," he chuckled a tad before switching into fourth gear and glancing back over at Rey.

"I still haven't gotten behind the wheel to begin driving lessons. It just fascinated me is all," She stated while turning her gaze out of the window beside her.

In that moment, an idea came to the forefront of Ben's mind. He could teach her how to drive. Why not? He's been driving for several years now. Sure, he could be an ass sometimes when he got a little bit of road rage, but nevertheless he was a pretty good driver.

"How about one day I teach you how to drive?"

Rey's heart almost skipped a beat, "You'll teach me how to drive?"

He nodded while turning down to third gear and then shrugged, "Sure, why not?"

Yet again, a wide grin made its way across Rey's face, "That would be wonderful Ben."

Ben responded with a crooked grin of his own before it fell silent in the car once again. He noticed that the girl next to him kept playing with her fingers, a nervous habit he suspected. Hoping to ease her nerves, he decided to speak, "We're almost there."

She looked around at her surroundings, and could tell that they were heading a little bit out of the city, towards the village of Rosemont. Rey had been to Rosemont before to see a showing at one of the theaters, but it had been years since she was on this side of town.

Before long, Ben turned off of the busy street and into one of the public parking lots. He cut the engine, got out of his truck, and meandered his way over to Rey's side before opening her door.

"Such a gentleman," she said with a smile while getting out of the truck.

"Thank you. Now, our destination is right around the corner."

And with that, the two of them made their way out of the parking lot before turning a left at the corner. Right in front of them was their destination: a bowling alley.

"Bowling?" Rey acknowledged while looking across the street at the neon sign.

"We could always go somewhere else," Ben suggested nervously while looking down at her and then over at the building.

"I'm just surprised is all."

"Surprised by what?"

"Surprised that you want to get your butt whooped on the first date," Rey could barely keep in a smile as she gazed up at Ben.

His eyes widened a bit and a sly smile came across his face, "Is that a challenge?"

"Mhm. You bet it is."

"Oh, so now we're making bets? You're digging yourself into a much deeper hole, Miss Rey."

"Hey! That's not what I meant," she chuckled while hitting his shoulder lightly with her hand.

Ben looked down at her amazed. She was one of the first girls, besides his own mother, that had talked to him in that type of manner. Other girls he had taken out in the past were ditzy and shallow. They didn't have much substance to them other than their looks. But Rey was different. She was strong and feisty. Boy was she feisty. He could already tell that she was one of a kind, and he wanted to know more about the girl standing beside him.

Once the thoughts left him, he smiled with that same old crooked grin before nodding across the street, "Come on. Let's see if you actually have game."

* * *

It was nearing the end of the game. Rey was up by one strike, which Ben thought was pretty impressive since he was not deliberately letting her win. Finally, it was his last turn. He made his way up to the line, put the bowling ball up to his mouth saying sweet words of encouragement, before he swung his arm back and released the ball onto the shiny wooden floor. The ball made its way down the alley until coming into contact with the pins. In the wake of the destruction, two pins were left standing on either side of one another.

A defeated sigh escaped from his lips while Rey sprung out of her seat, jumping with excitement before walking over to Ben and reaching her hand out, "Good game."

"You as well," Ben stated with acceptance while reaching out and grabbing ahold of her hand. Instantly, he noticed how much smaller it was compared to his. Not only in that moment did he realize how much smaller her hand was, but just her entire presence in general. Rey was several inches shorter than himself, and of much slimmer build. Still, her head came to his torso while standing up, and he wondered what it would be like to have her head nustle into his chest as they embraced each other.

Ben began to feel his cheeks flush. This was the first time he had reacted to a girl in this way. He was never the romantic type, but in that moment, being in front of Rey, he was willing to change his habits.

"So… It's only eight. We still have four more hours till you need to be back home. Is there anything else you'd like to do tonight?" Ben admitted before he could hold back his tongue.

Rey stood there a little shocked. By now, in the past, her dates would gladly bring her back to her house to ditch her for the rest of the night since they were unable to deal with her personality, which was so different from other women of the time period. But here was Ben, never ceasing to amaze her.

"How about we go and get some coffee?" Rey suggested with a wholesome smile.

Ben's heart almost exploded. She actually wanted to spend more time with him.

"That sounds like a great idea," Ben stated while putting on his trench coat before noticing Rey struggling with one of the arm holes on her own, "Here. Let me help you," Ben addressed while helping Rey with her coat.

She blushed in response, "Thank you Ben."

"Anytime."

"Shall we?" Rey motioned towards the door.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, they were sitting in one of Rey's favorite coffee shops. Rey got her usual drink, mint tea with lemon, while Ben got himself a black coffee.

She sipped on her tea while Ben took a drink of his own.

"So… tell me a little more about yourself," Rey spoke up while looking over at Ben from across the table.

Ben took another gulp before setting his cup down, "Well, what do you want to know?"

"Tell me about your family."

A little wave of resentment filled his being before Ben spoke, "Ummm… I'm an only child. I live with my mother... She was a pretty prominent leader during the women's suffrage movement within Chicago. Nowadays, she works at a non-profit downtown. And my Dad… Well, he hasn't been around since the crash of '29. He told us he was going out West to find a job but we never heard from him again."

And in that moment, Ben realized he had said more about himself to Rey than he had to any girl in the past.

He silently chastised himself.

Why was he doing this?

Why was he being so vulnerable?

But he felt like he could trust the girl with the chestnut hair with the soft eyes that was sitting in front of him, so he decided to continue, "My Dad was born and raised in Chicago, but the rest of my family is from Indiana. My uncle still lives there, he's a professor of philosophy and theology at the University of Notre Dame. That's pretty much it," he let out a bit of nervous chuckle while taking another sip of his coffee.

While he was talking, Rey had noticed must have been hard for him to talk about this particular subject, since he had been fidgeting with the napkin in front of him the whole time. But in the end, she felt some sort of relief. He must have trusted her to a point, and that made her stomach fill with butterflies.

But why did he trust her?

"I'm sorry about your father. If it makes you feel any better, I didn't really have a father figure in my life either."

Ben looked up from his mug and into Rey's hazel eyes. He felt a sense of comfort, knowing that she could somewhat understand what he had gone through during his childhood.

Ben was only eight when his father disappeared. This was the point in any young boys life in which a father figure meant the whole world. The evening before he left, Ben and his father were in the alleyway behind their apartment, throwing a baseball back and forth. He could still remember the sound of the "thud" when the ball would hit his father's old catchers mitt. Once they were done throwing for the night, his father kept the little baseball. In the morning when Ben woke up and realized his father was gone, so was the ball. Over the years that ball became a symbol. His heart. His father had stolen his heart, and his childhood. From that moment on, until around the age of thirteen, Ben stayed up each night, wondering why his father had to leave them behind, especially when they were trying their best to make ends meet to survive.

Growing up during the 1920's, like most other children, Ben's childhood was quaint and charming. His mother was still helping with suffrage work throughout the city, while his father was away doing business. The only time his whole family was together was during the weekends, when his father would come home. One day, when Ben was around six, they had career day in their classroom, where his fellow peers brought in their father's so that they could discuss what they did for a living. Some were firefighters, policemen, or even businessmen. So that weekend, once his father came home, Ben asked him what his job was. His fathers response was, "I put a roof over your head and food in your belly, that's what I do for a living."

Although his father could be somewhat distant at times, Ben still loved him. They shared a love of sports together. Sometimes, if his father had made a few extra dollars that week, he would take Ben to Wrigley Field to see the Chicago Cubs play. But when his father left after the crash, his love of baseball faded away into the distance, just like his father. Whenever he walked by a diamond, or saw a baseball bat laying in the street, he could only think of his father. And in that moment, anger would billow out of him. As a result, when he entered high school, he channeled those years of anger and abandonment onto the football field, where he shined as a linebacker. By his sophomore year of high school, he was already getting division-one scholarship offers. He declined all of them, stating that although he was pretty good at football, he did not want to make a career out of it.

"So, tell me something about you," Ben stated while finishing his cup of coffee.

Rey thought to herself for a moment before speaking, "I love animals."

Ben couldn't help but smile. She seemed to be so innocent compared to him.

"I could tell. I saw the picture of you on the mantel."

Rey's face turned as bright as a lobster, "You did not."

Ben chuckled, "Yeah, I did."

Her eyes widened.

He winked, "Don't worry. It was pretty adorable."

She took a sip of her tea, hoping it would calm her down, "I literally look like an overstuffed marshmallow in that photograph."

Ben couldn't help but let out a massive laugh. Rey followed in pursuit, "Hey! Stop laughing at my misfortune."

"If it makes you feel any better, my mother has a photograph of me as a toddler with a diaper over my head, running buck naked into the kitchen. She keeps it on the end-table next to the couch."

Before he could finish speaking, Rey was laughing so hard that tears had begun to form in her eyes.

"That's rough," is all she could get out while trying to regain her breath.

Ben sighed, "Yeah. Try explaining that one to the football team."

* * *

The next few hours seemed to fly by. Most of the night they talked about embarrassing stories from growing up, and their laughter seemed to fill the entire space. Before long, it was time for Ben to take Rey back home.

They made their way to his truck, and he opened the door for her once more. She sat down in the seat, and a few moments later he was sitting down next to her.

After several minutes of driving, the truck lurched to a stop at a red light. Ben looked over to the girl with the curly chestnut hair next to him, "I had a really great time tonight, Rey."

She smiled when she heard his deep-voice say her name and looked over to him, "So did I."

Ben was nearly blown away when she turned his way. The streetlight next to them brightened up her face, and her hazel eyes turned into a wonderful dark green color, almost resembling the hue of his truck.

She was beautiful.

Scratch that.

She was stunning.

He piped up his remaining courage before opening his mouth, "Maybe we could do this again next weekend?"

Rey could not believe what she was hearing.

He wanted to go on a second date?

A second date?!

Trying not to sound overly eager, she smiled and then gave a slight nod, "That would be lovely."

"So… How about same time, next Saturday?"

"Sounds like a plan," Rey stated while a huge grin came across her face.

He nodded and smiled, with his same goofy grin while looking back onto the road and shifting the truck back into gear.

They made it to her house with five minutes to spare. Ben helped Rey out of the truck before walking her to the old Victorian front door.

She got the front door key out from her clutch and then looked up at the tall man next to her. He couldn't help but smile down at her before reaching over and brushing a piece of stray hair off of her cheek with his thumb and behind her ear, "I'll see you next Saturday, okay?"

Rey barely heard what he said, since she was more focused on the hand that was cupping her cheek. Nonetheless, she smiled and nodded while looking up into his caramel colored eyes, "Of course."

Ben continued to smile while he lowered his hand off of her cheek and back to his side before turning around and making his way back to the pickup on the curb. Within moments the engine roared back to life, and the forest green truck made its way down the dimly lit street.

And there stood Rey, blushing and grinning from cheek to cheek like a giddy middle-schooler.

* * *

 **Yayyyy! Chapter three is finally over. Still don't know if I like this chapter or not, but oh well, at least it's out of the way.**

 **If you liked it, let me know! As always, y'all are amazing.**


	4. October 18, 1939

**Again, I'm so very sorry for the delay of this next chapter coming out! Life can be pretty cray cray at times, and it seems like mine continues to be like that. My summer job starts soon and I hope that I can update this as regularly as possible before I go back to college! I'll see how much I'll be able to write after long days of having kids dangling off of me and playing an endless amount of kickball and four square.**

 **Anyway, as always, I want to thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart. The praise is absolutely unreal, and makes me want to shed a few tears.**

 **Real quick before going into the next chapter, I want to make a shoutout to Krysta_Farrell, thank you so much for leaving your wonderful comments! They absolutely brightened up my day when I saw them. Even with everything you have gone through, I'm so glad that you have a better relationship with your adoptive parents. Family means the world to me, and it fills me with joy that although you have had your falling out with them in the past, that y'all have accepted each other again. Everything happens for a reason just to make us stronger in the end, always remember that!**

 **As always, sit back, relax, and enjoy :)**

* * *

Wednesday, October 18, 1939.

In Rey's eyes, the week so far has been pretty uneventful. She goes to class, comes home, grabs a quick snack, and then heads to her room to finish the remaining homework that she did not have time to finish during study hall.

Kaydel had been absent from school on both Monday and Tuesday. She had callen Rey Sunday night, stating that she had caught the stomach bug and would be unable to walk with her to and from school for the next several days. Before Rey could tell Kaydel about her date night with Ben, Kaydel had rushed to the bathroom to relieve her stomach, promptly ending their conversation.

Though, Rey didn't mind.

She was nervous telling Kaydel about her date with the infamous Ben Solo.

And the fact that he had asked her on a second date.

Golly, it still made her stomach fill with butterflies at the thought of it.

Rey's morning routine during the school year was as typical as it could get. She got up around six o'clock, and went straight to the bathroom to freshen herself up while taking out the curlers that she had meticulously placed in her hair the night prior. Setting her curls into their correct positions, she would head into her bedroom to put on a minimal amount of makeup: some mascara, a hint of blush, and a more neutral shade of lipstick. Once finished with her face, she would head to her closet to choose her outfit for the day.

On this day in particular, she was sporting a dark purple dress when she rushed down the old Victorian staircase and into the kitchen, grabbing an apple off the counter before heading into the foyer to get her coat.

"Rey! There's no need to rush." Her adoptive mother, Ahsoka demanding while she came down the stairs after Rey.

Rey was partially out of breath, "I have to go. I'm almost late for school."

At once, Ahsoka looked down at her watch and her deep-blue eyes widened.

7:20.

School started at 7:30.

Rey's walk to school was ten minutes in itself.

"I'll meet you in the car… Let me go grab my keys!" Ahsoka shouted while she disappeared into the distance.

A smile laced its way across Rey's face.

Her mother was amazing.

A true superhero.

Her superhero.

* * *

Rey made it to school with three minutes to spare. She nearly sprinted to her locker, putting her satchel and textbooks into it while grabbing her essentials before running towards her homeroom.

As soon as her feet crossed the threshold of the door, the bell sounded.

"Ahhhh… Miss Tano, this isn't like you. You're late," Her grumpy old teacher stated while sitting down at his desk, as he began to check off the roster for the day.

Rey scurried over to her desk. "My apologies, Mr. Belami."

He looked over the class in her direction, nodding his head down and causing his circular glasses to fall down his nose ever so slightly, "Let's not make a habit of it, hm?"

She nodded before opening her agenda book to create a game plan for the day. Rey almost inwardly groaned when she saw that there was an organic chemistry project due next week.

 _Really? Does the universe just love crapping in my general direction?_ She hissed in her subconscious.

While still skimming through her agenda, she felt a finger poke into her arm.

"Looks like you're already taking after Benny boy," a feminine voice called.

She turned to scold whoever said it, and to her surprise, it was her best friend, Kaydel herself. Rey must have not noticed her when she hurried into the classroom.

"Look who it is, back from the dead," Rey laughed while giving her friend a heartwarming smile, hoping to change the subject.

Kaydel skin was starting to regain it's normal pigment, and she had even taken the time out of her morning to create a fabulous ponytail out of her pale blonde locks. Even though she seemed to have been on death's doorsteps forty-eight hours prior, she looked almost as glowing as ever.

She narrowed her teak colored eyes at Rey, "You and I have a lot to talk about."

Rey began to fidget with her hands underneath the desk, "About what?"

A harsh throat cleared itself from the front of the room, causing the two best friends to dart their eyes forward. The homeroom teacher, Mr. Belami, gave them the same look he always did which translated to: shut your mouths.

"I should smack you for that response…" Kaydel mumbled under her breath before opening her Spanish textbook to finish last minute vocabulary she needed to know for her quiz third period.

Thankfully, the bell rang, signaling the end of homeroom and saving Rey from having to spill her feelings out to her friend, at least for the time being.

She huddled her books into her arms, "I'll see you at lunch, bye Kay!"

"Wait, Rey-"

And before Kaydel could finish her sentence, Rey rushed out of the door to her second period class, English Literature.

Rey released a sigh of relief before realizing she would have to confront not only Kaydel at lunch, but Zekk as well.

 _Darnit…_

* * *

Wednesday was already shaping up to be the same as always, at least in Ben's eyes. He got to school late, like usual, taking his sweet old time to enjoy the brisk morning air while it made its way through the Ford's slightly cracked windows.

It was finally nearing one of Ben's favorite subjects of the day: lunch. First, he had to get through the last ten minutes of European history.

He sat there, in a desk that was almost too small to hold his large frame, tapping his pencil on edge of his seat. History was boring to him. Well, at least learning history at school was boring to him. He had already learned all of the information his teacher had been spitting out the entire semester. Growing up, one of his favorite pastimes was reading, especially when it came not only to history, but military history as well.

Ben almost chuckled under his deep-breath, thinking that he could teach the class better than the nimwit of the teacher in front of him. But alas, he didn't speak his mind when it came to the matter, instead keeping his thoughts to himself. It always gave him great satisfaction each time he saw the surprised expression on his teacher's face each time he had gotten a 100% on an exam.

School had always come easy to Ben, and he didn't put much effort into his studies. That didn't stop him from acing nearly every single class he had ever been in. Except for chemistry. He never wanted to look upon a periodic table again once he finished that class.

Was he a dumb jock?

No, he wasn't.

His friends on the other hand… God help them.

After what seemed to be an eternity, the bell rang, signaling that it was time for lunch.

Once he had stopped by his locker to drop off a few textbooks, he made his way over to the huddle of football players that were congregating in the hallway. He reached out and slapped several of their hands and gave a few brotherly side hugs to the players.

As they walked into the cafeteria, the group of neanderthals made their way to their usual table.

Ben sat down in his traditional spot, at the end of the long rectangular table, while the rest of his closest friends sat on the other side. He opened his brown paper bag, revealing three sandwiches and an apple for dessert. Wrapped around one of the sandwiches was a note from his mother:

 _Enjoy Benji, with lots of love. XOXO. - Mom_

She really had to stop doing this, he was eighteen for God's sakes. But still, it always tugged at his heart strings whenever she left a note, which had become few and far between now that she was working such long hours at the non-profit downtown.

Out of what seemed to be nowhere, his best friend, Dopheld Mitaka came prancing into the lunchroom before taking his normal seat to Ben's right. He too had several sandwiches, and a glass of milk he had ordered from the line. Dop looked over to his left while taking a bite out of the turkey sub before saying with food still in his mouth, "Oh Benny boy. That's too cute," while motioning towards the note before swallowing.

Ben rolled his carmel colored eyes before folding the note and putting it into his back pocket. He wanted to say a mean comment back to his friend about how at least he had a mother who wrote him notes. But he knew that would take things way too far, especially since Dop's mother had abandoned the family, leaving his father to take care of four hungry children during the height of the depression.

It seemed like so many of those around him had been abandoned, just like him.

Maybe that's why there was such a strong sense of brotherhood amongst the football players at Central. Each of them had gone through too much in their short lives, all because some bankers and the government were unable to handle the economy.

Ben mentally shrugged while digging into his own sandwich. It was the usual: ham, lettuce, cheddar cheese, and some mustard. Sometimes he wished there was more on the sub, but he was happy to at least have a meal which filled his stomach.

Once his first sandwich had been devoured, Ben felt Dop's elbow nudge into his ribcage, "So… you never told us about your evening with the girl from West."

Instantly, the small crowd of men started to holler a bit, which caused other patrons within the cafeteria to give the group harsh glances.

Ben refrained from rolling his eyes before swallowing his bite, "It was fine."

"Let's get the most important question out of the way, did you get any tail?" One of the burly defensive tackles asked from across the table.

Ben didn't say anything and continued to eat his sandwich, while taking a swig of water to help it all go down.

Dop's brown eyes widened before he smirked and slapped his best friends shoulder before shaking it, "You dog."

Ben smacked Dop's hand away, causing the smaller man to wince.

Ben had to hold in a small laugh.

Even though Mitaka was the quarterback for Central, he could be soft at times. Especially when it came to his girlfriend. It was almost hysterical the change in his demeanor once she came around. Mitaka would go from an aggressive wolverine and turn into a complete and utter teddy bear, doting on his girlfriend for any of her needs. Little did Mitaka want to admit, his girlfriend definitely wore the pants in the relationship.

In a way it disgusted Ben.

Why would someone act that way?

Yet again, Ben had never been in a real relationship, so he had no idea how couples were suppose to act.

Would he change too if he had a girl to lovingly dote upon?

Then his mind went back to Rey.

Maybe with her, things could change.

But was Ben willing to change?

Change was something that Ben didn't accept with open arms.

Snapping out of his thoughts, he shot his best friend an annoyed glance after smacking the quarterbacks hand, "Stop acting like you're twelve."

"Come on… We just wanted to know! She looks like a catch, Solo," the defensive tackle across the table pushed while taking a drink of his chocolate milk.

Solo.

Another thing he didn't like being called.

The name made him think too much about his father.

Han Solo, the man that dumped his family.

The vital parental figure that had been absent from his only child's life.

One time when he had been called that on the football field during a playoff game his sophomore year by a member of the opposing team, he sent the boy to the hospital.

Did he have a temper?

Most definitely.

Did he release that temper on other people?

All the time.

Especially on the football field.

Now Ben was starting to become even more ticked each second that passed, "That's for me to know, and me only," he hissed while shooting gazes of pure resentment at his closest friends.

Mitaka was thrown back a bit by his sudden demeanor, it had been around a week since Ben's last out lash, "Woah, calm down Ben. We're just messing around."

Ben had enough of their immaturity for the day.

He got up from the table and went for the side door of the cafeteria, causing it to slam against the building before he made his way over to the forest green Ford pickup.

Ben flicked his keys out of his side pocket, opened the door, got inside, and promptly started to hit the steering wheel as hard as he could, trying to release his rage.

Solo.

Han Solo.

A man that ruined him.

How dare someone say that name in front of him.

Ben made a mental note that one day, in the near future, he would go to the courthouse and have his name changed, so that he did not have to be reminded of it for the best of his life.

While continuing to hit his steering wheel, a familiar scent filled Ben's nose. He looked over to his right where the scent had come from, and it took him a moment to pinpoint its origins.

Rey.

Her perfume.

It still continued to linger in his car, and he closed his eyes to get a better mental picture while taking a deep breath of the pleasant smell.

As if by pure magic, Ben instantly started to calm down.

Rey.

Why was she having this effect on him?

Too many questions started racing through his mind, causing him to rub his temples.

He needed a release, and he knew the best way to solve the problem.

Ben reached over to his glove compartment, and withdrew a fresh Camel from its packaging.

He placed it between his full lips while flicking the lighter open, and brought it to the end of the cigarette, which caused the piece of paper with tobacco to glow to life.

As soon as the cigarette was lit, he snapped the lighter shut and proceeded to take in two long drags, holding it in his lungs before breathing the smoke out through his nose.

And in that moment, Ben realized something.

Cigarettes had been his first and foremost way to calm himself down.

Now, it seemed as though he had a new drug of choice to calm his nerves.

Her name was Rey.

* * *

Rey's eyes were glued to the clock in the front of the classroom, hoping that time would stop forever.

The last thing she wanted to do in fifteen minutes was talk to her best friend about Ben Solo.

Why was Kaydel so concerned about Ben Solo in the first place?

He seemed to be a nice person when they had gone on their date a few nights prior.

Ben had been a gentleman. He opened doors for Rey, and even complimented her when she came down the stairs. He was beginning to look like a winner in her books.

He had been more of a gentleman than any of her other dates in the past, and she took that to heart.

In the days following the date, she tried her best to keep Ben off of her mind. She still had school that she needed to focus on, but still, her mind seemed more focused on imagining the bigger than life man that had cupped her cheek on Saturday night.

Rey jumped in her seat once she finally heard the bell ring.

Heading out of the classroom, she started to get knots in her stomach the closer she neared her locker. She fiddled around with the textbooks in her locker, trying to seem more occupied than she actually was.

She became startled once more when Kaydel and Zekk creeped up from behind before pouncing on her.

Rey rolled up a TIME magazine which had been in her locker since the beginning of the year and slapped Zekk on his muscular arm with the piece of leisurely reading, "Stop doing that all the time, you jerk!"

Kaydel let out a quiet laugh while Zekk wrapped his arm around the small dirty-blonde, putting his right hand on the small of her back before his deep-voice spilled out, "Hey, you should at least expect it by now."

Rey mumbled under her breath while grabbing her lunch pail before shutting the metal locker shut, "I'm hungry. Let's go eat."

Once again, Rey was trying to avoid the inevitable.

"Oooo… yes, my favorite part of the day!" Zekk gleamed as they made their way into the cafeteria. Honestly, around eighty-five percent of the time, Rey thought that Zekk had to of been a five year old boy stuck in the body of a six foot, four inch, two hundred and ten pound, eighteen year old by the way he acted on a daily basis.

 _Was food the only thing that men thought about other than certain parts of the female anatomy for God sakes?_ Rey questioned in her mind.

She shook her head as they took their seat at their usual table. It was close to the other members of the West football team, so that Zekk could holler over to them every so often, but still far enough away so that Rey didn't have to deal with the stupidity of high school football players.

Like always, as soon as they sat down, Zekk started to devour his lunch. It was quite nauseating to look at.

Rey redirected her attention down towards the lunch pail sitting in front of her, before she started to dig in as well.

A few moments of silence transcended between the small group of friends, before Kaydel could barely hold it in any longer, "So, Saturday. You and Ben Solo. Let's discuss that wonderful encounter."

Rey's eyes widened a bit as she shot a glance to the blonde on the other side of the table before looking down at her lunch, "There's nothing to discuss."

Zekk looked up from his chicken sandwich and locked his pale blue eyes into Rey's, suddenly filled with an ounce of panic, "What happened? Did he hurt you? I swear to God if he did, I will kick his ass into the next decade."

"And how did that go for you last time, Zekk?" Rey shot back narrowing her eyes at her best friends boyfriend.

Zekk instantly shut up while taking another bite of his sandwich before swallowing some of his pride.

"Hey… Don't make fun of my Boobear." Kaydel joked while placing a kiss on her boyfriend's cheek. A smile full of a few crooked teeth appeared on Zekk's face.

Rey wanted to throw up.

They were always so hands on with each other.

Granted, no one had ever put their hands on her.

Well, except for this last Saturday.

But that didn't count.

Wait, did it?

He only touched her cheek.

Still, did that count?

Kaydel and Zekk were almost on the verge of mauling each other every moment they were together.

Was that how every couple was?

Or just her two best friends?

She mentally cringed before taking another bite of her food.

"Come on… At least tell us something," Kaydel urged impatiently, while nibbling on some plain golden crackers. It seemed like she was still recovering from the stomach flu based on her dietary choice for the day.

Rey bit her lip, contemplating what to say, before opening her mouth, "He took me out to bowling… I won by the way."

Zekk winked over to her, "That's my girl."

Kaydel hit his leg underneath the table before rolling her eyes. The sudden movement on his thigh made Zekk release a small growl to his significant other, "You'll pay for that later, my darling."

Ew.

Really?

Right now?

 _I'm trying to eat over here. At least give her a week or two to recoup after having the stomach flu, you impatient neanderthal…_ Rey voiced in her head.

Rey glanced over the table to the couple on the other side, who were eyeing each other in a seductive manner that was way too inappropriate for the public's eye, "Well… as I was saying..."

As soon as she started to speak, the couple broke their eye contact and refocused their attention on the girl with the chestnut brown hair across from them.

"After we finished at the bowling alley, Ben drove us over to my favorite cafe. Then we sat there for a few hours, talking about different embarrassing stories from our childhood. Then at eleven thirty, he drove me back to my house, and that was it."

Kaydel and Zekk were not entirely convinced that was it.

Zekk looked like he had just tasted poison in his mouth before uttering the words, "So… did you and Ben, ya know, kiss?"

Of course that would be the number one question.

Rey was more surprised that Zekk had asked it as opposed to her best friend, but the blonde figure sat there, continuing to nibble on crackers while taking the occasional sip on some water.

Rey was happy that she was at least eating something after probably not eating much over the last forty-eight hours. In truth, Kaydel should have stayed home for the day, as she was still recovering. But, she had two quizzes that she could not miss, so here she was, being as stubborn as a bull, sitting at the lunch table, infecting everything that she touched.

Rey made a mental note to promptly wash her hands once they left the cafeteria. The last thing she wanted this time of year was to lay in bed, blowing chunks everywhere.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Rey's face flushed once she remembered Zekk's question, "No, we didn't kiss."

Rey noticed a sense of relief wave over both of her friends.

"Good, or I would have to send him into the next decade," Kaydel noted while flexing her bicep. Of course, nothing protruded from the girl's thin arm. It caused Zekk and Rey to laugh while Kaydel blushed, "Hey, I have more than you Mister…" she snipped to her boyfriend while poking his own arm.

A sly smile came across his face, "Oh yeah? Maybe this weekend I can prove otherwise."

Kaydel's face flushed even more while she took a drink of water, in an attempt to calm herself.

Rey's forest green eyes widened a bit, suddenly feeling the rush of energy between the two people in front of her, "Okayyyy, I think that's my cue to leave and finish my homework in the library. You kids have fun with… whatever you're doing."

The couple were gazing into each other's eyes, while every so often whispering things back and forth between one another.

Jeez, they were only apart for three days.

Apparently that was way too long in Kaydel and Zekk's eyes.

Rey closed her lunch pail and turned around to head out of the lunchroom. From there, she made a quick stop at her locker to grab what she needed to finish her geometry homework. Before long, she was heading towards the library.

She sat down in one of the plush chairs and opened her textbook to begin the tedious work.

However, Rey had forgotten one crucial thing.

She forgot to wash her hands.

* * *

 **Woah! That was my longest chapter yet. Thank you for making it all the way through!**

 **I'm an absolute history geek/nerd/whatever kids call it these days. So, in true historical fashion, I've been trying to make each character's thoughts/conversations with one another as period accurate as possible. I've been told by countless people that teenage boys acted pretty much the same back then as they do now, so I decided to add that in here as well. Sigh... it seems like teenage boys have always been a tornado of hormones, even back in 1939. Oh well, what can ya do?**

 **If you liked it, definitely let me know! :)**


	5. October 21, 1939

**Hey everyone!**

 **Sorry again for the late upload! I've been trying to enjoy my last few days of freedom before my summer job starts.**

 **As always, sit back, relax, and enjoy!**

 **PSA: ***I do not own Star Wars, although that would be really badass*****

* * *

Saturday, October 21, 1939.

Early morning light filtered through the curtains of Rey's bedroom, dancing along the walls as the sun started to rise over the western portion of the city of Chicago. Every so often, a cloud would make its way in front of the sun, causing a brief moment of bleakness, until the glowing orb in the sky fought its way back through to shine once more.

Rey's hazel eyes opened ever so slightly as the light started to billow into her space. The small girl let out a groan the instant the sun hit her eyes, causing her to promptly close them.

She buried herself back into the pillows and covered her face with the green checkered quilt, trying to block out the sun's rays for a few minutes more. Slowly but surely, she was able to doze off into a light sleep for another half an hour before waking up to a sudden pain in her stomach.

Rey sat up uneasily in her bed while rubbing her abdomen, in hopes to make the uncomfortable feeling go away. It only got worse, and as she tried to stand up, Rey was hit with a sudden bout of nausea.

She ran as fast she could into the hall bathroom, slamming the door shut behind her in an attempt to hide her sudden sickness from the outside world. The last thing Rey wanted this time of year was to become ill, especially with the stomach flu.

Rey began to heave in front of the toilet. It felt like years passed until finally, she was able to release all of the contents that were present in her stomach. Beads of sweat started to pour down from her forehead as her body tried its best to deal with the sudden shock. Sitting on the floor, she could feel her temperature slowly rising.

 _Shit…_ she muffled in her groggy head.

Once Rey thought she had recouporated to the best of her present ability, she grabbed onto the sink in an attempt to pull herself off of the bathroom floor. She stood up for a moment, only to crumble back down once more before another wave of nausea hit her.

She lifted her head back over the rim of the toilet, and began the ritual again.

Afterwards she wiped her mouth with the hem of her nightgown while flushing the toilet, and laid down onto the cold tile floor, hoping that the chilly black and white tile would help to bring her temperature down.

 _I'm going to kill Kay for getting me sick…_ the weakened girl grumbled in her head before a migraine started to form.

As soon as she laid her head back down onto the bathroom floor to take breather, the door flew open and hit itself against the wall, revealing a panic stricken Ahsoka, "Rey! I heard you slam the door all the way from downstairs, what happen-"

Before she could finish the sentence, Rey leaned back over the porcelain throne and emptied her stomach once again. However, this time, there was nothing left to bring up, which caused her to dry heave. Ahsoka hurried over to her adoptive daughter and pulled Rey's hair out of the way while rubbing small circles on her back, hoping to sooth her. Once Rey was finished, Ahsoka helped her lay back down before rolling up a towel and placing it underneath her head to make her more comfortable.

Even in her pale and weakened state, Rey gave a faint smile to Ahsoka.

She would forever be thankful that such a loving and caring soul had adopted her, all of those years ago.

A genuine smile made its way across Ahsoka's features before she stated, "I'll be right back with some ginger ale, crackers, and a change of clothes for you. Just try to get some rest, Hun."

Rey nodded slightly before closing her eyes.

She drifted off into a light sleep, trying to regain as much strength as she could before the next wave struck.

* * *

Dark brown locks draped over Ben's eyes as he finally opened them to the new day.

It was Saturday.

He had another date with Rey today.

Ben smiled a bit as he shook the hair out of his eyes and flung his long legs off the side of his bed. As Ben looked around the apartment, he stretched his arms and back which were riddled with aching muscles from lasts nights game before getting up to make his way into the bathroom to relieve himself. Once finished, Ben flushed, washed his hands in the sink, then looked into the mirror in front of him. Grabbing a can of shaving cream, he sprayed some of it onto his lengthy fingers before wiping it onto his face. He filled the sink with warm water, tapped the razor into the basin, and started to shave his mug in a meticulous fashion.

Half way through, he heard the door to the apartment open and then close, followed by a ruffling of paper bags being placed on the kitchen table.

A feminine voice filled the air, "Ben?"

"I'm in the bathroom!"

His mother made her way to the only bathroom in the whole apartment and gave a heartwarming smile to her only son, "You're shaving on a Saturday morning. That means only one thing… you have an important day ahead of you."

Ben shrugged before tapping the razor clean in the water and bringing it back to his upper lip, "Yeah… I have a second date with a girl from West tonight."

"A second date… and a girl from West? She must really be a catch if you're going after a girl from the enemy's turf," She winked with admiration at her son.

 _Maybe she'll be different from the rest…_ Leia questioned in her mind.

He tried to hold back a blush, "She's different from other girls that I've taken out in the past."

And _bingo was his namo…_ Leia laughed to herself subconsciously.

"Well… if all works out, I would love to meet her sometime," Leia asserted with another smile before heading back into the kitchen to start unloading the groceries.

Once Ben was finished shaving, he walked into the kitchen and helped his mother put away items. The petite woman was always grateful when her son was home to help around the house.

The kitchen in the apartment was relatively small, and consisted of only a few cabinets, a stove and a sink. Everything that you needed to get the job done in the kitchen, as Leia would often say to her son. The mother and son pair had called this small dwelling home ever since Ben was brought into the world. His father had insisted once Leia was expecting that they should get a larger space. At the time it made logical sense. Nowadays, Ben's rather large frame seemed to make the space feel smaller and smaller each year that passed.

The apartment was a one bedroom, one bathroom unit. Upon entering the space, the kitchen was off to the right, and to the left was the rather spacious living room. Off in the corner, behind a curtain that had been hung, was Ben's area. It consisted of a twin sized bed, with a nightstand and a small bookshelf. In Ben's eyes, that was all he could ever need. As long as he had a roof over his head and food in his stomach, he could care less about his living arrangements.

His mother stayed in the only bedroom, which housed a full sized bed and a closet which both Ben and his mother shared. Although the apartment wasn't much to look at, Ben still adored the place he called home. Sure, it wasn't as lavish as other homes on the block, but at least he had somewhere to lay his head after football practice or another grueling day at work.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Ben opened one of the side cabinets, picked up a box of corn flakes, and poured its contents into a blue colored bowl. He put some sugar over the cereal, before filling the bowl with milk and sitting down at the only table in the apartment. His mother made the same breakfast and sat down across from him.

"So… tell me about her," Leia piped up while taking her first bite of her cereal.

Ben swallowed his bite while looking down and moving some of the cereal around in the bowl with his spoon, "She's feisty and stubborn."

His mother's brown eyes suddenly gleamed, "I love her already."

He chuckled a bit and took another bite of corn flakes, "She's definitely different from other girls… That's for sure."

"Good, you need a girl that can whip you into shape," Leia laughed while taking a sip of her coffee.

His eyes widened and looked at the woman sitting across from him, "Excuse me?"

Leia narrowed her brown orbs at him, "Last time I checked you weren't deaf, so I know you heard me correctly."

He grumbled under his breath while poking at his cereal, "What do you know…"

Upon hearing her son mumble underneath his deep breath, Leia grabbed the newspaper next to her, rolled it up, and smacked him across the forearm, causing the silver spoon to splash into the milk.

"Hey! What was that for?!" Ben exclaimed while trying to find his spoon in the cereal bowl.

Leia scoffed, "Your smart mouth. I ought to make you eat soap to wash it out."

Ben sat there, inwardly brooding at his mother's comment.

He was not a child anymore and could say whatever he wanted, when he wanted.

And Rey.

What did his mother mean by having her whip him into shape? He was already the size of a refrigerator for God's sake. The last thing he needed was to gain anymore muscle. Or did she mean it in a different context?

Still, how dare she say such things to him.

Before saying anything else, he tried to calm himself down to the best of his ability. He clenched his hands underneath the table and closed his eyes, a technique his mother had once taught him when he was younger and having trouble dealing with his father's absence.

Upon noticing him trying to calm his anger, a frown made its way across Leia's face as she reached across the table to grab his larger than life hand, before she spoke, "Ben… I'm sorry. I didn't think my comments would affect you in this way."

He glanced back at his Mom before pulling his hand away, "I'm going to be late for work..." he mumbled while getting up from his seat, leaving his half eaten bowl of corn flakes on the table as he grabbed his coat and stepped out of the apartment.

* * *

Work was work.

Since he was fifteen, Ben had been working in an auto-body shop, fixing up cars on the weekends to get a little extra money to help his mother with rent. However, during the summers, he was at the body-shop full-time, working hard to make the money flow.

This Saturday afternoon, he was laying underneath a 1934 Chevy Suburban, trying his best to fix the leaking transmission that had been plaguing the vehicle for what seemed to be months. Almost like clockwork, once every few weeks, the owners would bring the hunk of junk back to the body-shop, praying that it would finally be fixed for good. Not only was it leaking non-stop, but the transmission was rusting from the inside out, something Ben had never seen in his three years of working at the shop.

 _They need to chuck this car into the lake..._ Ben inwardly brewed.

Chevy's.

Ben despised Chevy's.

Ford's were of much higher quality, at least in his mind.

Wheeling himself back out from under the car, Ben wiped away the sweat on his brow with his greasy right hand, causing a black mark to be left in its wake.

By now the owners had returned to hear a status report on their beloved vehicle.

Ben wiped off some of the grease from his hands with a cloth and made his way out into the lobby of the establishment.

He found the older looking couple, sitting on one of the many benches. The man was dozing off in his seat, while his wife was reading a fashion magazine.

Ben made his way over to the jolly couple, and cleared his throat, causing the older man to jolt back into this world.

"I'm sorry Mr. and Mrs. Binks, I think it might be time to get a new car. I just can't seem to fix it," Ben sighed.

One thing Ben hated more than his father was defeat.

The older man suddenly looked distraught, "Ben, are you sure? There's nothing that can be done? I can't afford another car right now. I saved up all my money to purchase this vehicle, and I need it to get to and from work in the suburbs. It's the best job I've had since the crash; a steady income, but still, I can't afford anything else. I can't risk losing my job." The older man stopped and looked up at Ben with pleading eyes.

"Mr. Binks I've tried every-" Ben started before he was interrupted by his boss.

Andy Snoke, a man in his late fifties, with white hair and piercing blue eyes made his way into the lobby and over to the distraught couple and Ben, before reaching out his hand to grip the older gentleman's hand, "Mr. Binks, it's such a pleasure to see you again. I see that your Chevy is causing you trouble again, how about we go back into my office and we can discuss matters in there. No need to make a scene out here, right?" He let out a small chuckle and a somewhat warm glance between the couple.

Both of them nodded while Snoke reached out to Mrs. Bink's hand, "Ah. Mrs. Binks, looking younger than ever. Is that a new haircut? It's absolutely ravishing."

The woman giggled a bit while a small blush made its way across her cheeks as she returned the shake and placed her other hand on top of Snoke's, "Mr. Snoke, how wonderful of you to say."

Snoke gave another warm and devious smile which was simply unnoticeable to the older couple, "How about you both make your way into my office, and I will be there in just a bit. I have something I need to take care of."

And with that, the couple made their way into his office while one of the secretary's walked in with glasses of iced water and closed the door behind her.

Snoke's auto-body shop was known as one of the best within the city of Chicago, and he would not let anything stand in his way of achieving that title, no matter what. For decades, he was trusted by members of society that others feared, such as gangsters and bootleggers. Because of this, he was able to keep his business in check even during the height of the depression. The entire lobby was made of white marble, with hints of gold leaf. That's what drew people into the place. It looked like a business that people could trust to the best of their ability. The prices were almost fair, and there were often no complaints from patrons that visited.

But behind the scenes, it was a completely different story.

Snoke motioned for Ben to follow him into one of the hallways before he reached up and smacked him behind his head, causing Ben to wince as he was taken off guard.

Snoke scoffed while looking up at the taller boy in front of him, "You disappoint me, Solo."

Ben stood there silently, looking down at his boots. He was all too familiar with being battered by his boss. Ben had known Snoke ever since his father abandoned the family. He heard on the street one day of a way to get money and at the time his mother needed it desperately, so he walked through the pearly white gates of the auto-shop, and the rest was history. His boss knew of Han Solo through the smuggling rings and strongly despised the man. Even so, Snoke became Ben's mentor, and helped his family stay afloat, even though Ben would never admit to his mother where his extra raises came from. In some ways, Snoke filled the shoes of the father figure Ben never had. Still, he could be an ass about ninety-eight-percent of the time.

"Look at me when I'm talking to you boy!" Snoke asserted with dominance.

Instantly, Ben's caramel eyes moved onto those of his boss. A sudden chill plagued his body looking into the heartless eyes of Andy Snoke.

Snoke grimaced, "You have too much of your father's heart in you... Always trying to be a better person. Stop the bullshit and do your job. I'm sick and tired of you feeling sorry for everyone that comes into this place who can't rub two pennies together to save their life. This is a business, and businesses make money. Money that helps put a roof over your mother's head."

Ben continued to stand there silently, knowing it be best to stay quiet. After seeing he was causing no reaction in Ben, Snoke gritted his teeth before releasing a deep annoyed sigh, "Get your scrawny ass back to work and make me some more money for God sakes…"

And with that, his boss retreated back into his office, with the charming heartwarming smile back on his face to mask his true character to the older couple he was about to scam.

Ben mumbled under his breath before making a fist, tempted to punch the wall to his right. He stopped himself, noticing the watch on his wrist.

He only had two hours of work remaining for the day.

And only three hours until he would be reunited with Rey.

* * *

Just as the week prior, Rey heard the doorbell ring promptly at a quarter to six.

For the majority of the morning, Rey was laying on the bathroom floor, waiting for the next wave of nausea to attack.

Ahsoka's mother always insisted on staying in the bathroom when one was throwing up, since it was a much easier place to clean.

At around one in the afternoon, Rey was finally able to make her way back into bed, with the help of her mother. Still, she kept a trash bin next to her, in case anything else decided to come out of her body.

Luckily, the last time she threw up was around noon, so she was able to get much needed rest. Still, her head was plagued with a constant headache, and the nausea still never fully dissipated from her unruly stomach.

Rey tried her best to listen to the conversation happening in the entryway of the house.

Upon hearing the doorbell ring, Ahsoka made her into the foyer and opened the door. On the other side, she found Ben, sharply dressed like he had been the weekend prior, with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

Ahsoka gave him a small grin, signaling for him to come in.

He smiled down at Ahsoka while making his way out of the cold and into the warm house while closing the door behind him. He stood before Rey's mother, looking rather anxious while looking down at the flowers and then at Ahsoka, "I'm here to pick up Rey for this evening... I hope Roses aren't too cliche."

Rey's adoptive mother couldn't help but let out a rather stressed sigh.

Instantly, Ben's stomach dropped.

Something was wrong.

Noticing the sudden panic on Ben's face, Ahsoka decided to speak, "I'm sorry Ben, but Rey won't be able to go out tonight."

 _Shit… She doesn't want to see me… Why do I even bother?..._ Ben sighed in his mind while looking down at his feet.

Hoping to calm his nerves, Ahsoka continued while placing her hand on his shoulder, "It's not that she doesn't want to go out tonight Ben… She woke up this morning with the stomach flu. If we had your number, I would have called you sooner to cancel. I'm sorry that you had to come all this way Ben."

A weight came off his shoulders once he heard the news.

She still wanted to see him.

Nevertheless, he was worried about Rey. He wanted to make sure that she was okay.

Ben looked over to the stairs and then at Rey's mother, "Would I be able to bring these to her?" he stated while motioning towards the roses.

"Ben… I don't know if that's wise-"

Ahsoka was cut off by her daughter, who yelled from her room with the last bit of strength she had left, "I want to see him! Please Mom?!"

Ben instantly smiled when he heard her small voice coming from the top of the stairs.

Ahsoka rolled her eyes before yelling back, "Fine! But don't come crying to me when he gets sick!"

And with that, she retreated back into the kitchen to continue preparing a soup that wouldn't be too harsh on Rey's stomach.

Once Ahsoka disappeared, Ben made his way up the old Victorian staircase. On the wall that he passed, were photographs of Rey when she was a child. One caught his eye, a photo of her with cake batter all over her face, with the same bright smile as she waved to the camera.

He blushed a bit before he made his way to the top of the stairs. Ben looked around the space before settling his eyes on one of the doors that was propped open with light shining through it.

Upon opening the door, he found Rey laying in bed. She was slightly flushed, but pale at the same time. Sweat was glicing off her face, and her nose was red from her blowing it the entire day. The weakened girl looked back at him, with a small smile across her face.

"Hey…" Rey said while looking at the tall man standing in her door, "Sorry I ruined our date."

Ben made his way over to her while shaking his head, "You didn't ruin it, just changed the plans," he chuckled a bit while taking a seat in a rocking chair next to her bed, "Here… I brought you these."

Despite her being in pain, Rey's eyes brightened up once she laid her eyes on the dark red roses, "Ben… Roses are my favorite!" she exclaimed with joy.

He grinned while he laid them down in front of her. Rey inhaled the sweet aroma of the flowers and smiled before grabbing them and placing them next to her on the bed, "Thank you Ben."

"You're welcome Rey," He stated while leaning back in the chair before rocking back and forth for a little bit.

Ben was trying his best to get comfortable in the old rocking chair that looked like it was an antique from the Civil War era of the United States.

Suddenly, Rey was hit with a bit of guilt. He shouldn't be in her room. She didn't want him to get sick, especially with the stomach flu.

She opened her mouth to speak, "Ben… You shouldn't be in here. I don't want you to get sick, especially since it's football season, you can't afford to."

His stomach tightened a little.

She was actually concerned for his safety.

Ben grabbed ahold of her blistering hot hand and rubbed it with his thumb while looking into her green eyes, "Don't worry Rey, I won't get sick. You see this body? It'll scare anything away."

All of the animals in Noah's ark suddenly burst into her body upon feeling his hand on her own.

Nonetheless, Rey couldn't help but roll her eyes before a smile made its way across her face, "It didn't scare me away."

"Thank God," Ben returned a smile while rubbing his thumb over her hand once more before releasing it.

Rey inwardly pouted while he moved his hand away from her own.

She yelled at her self subconsciously, _Get a grip on yourself… The last thing you want is to make him sick…_

They sat there in silence for a bit before Rey finally spoke once more, "So… How was your week?"

* * *

It was nearing ten-o'clock and Ben was still sitting next to Rey in the rocking chair.

An hour earlier, Ahsoka came upstairs with the soup she had prepared and gave it over to Ben, who helped monitor Rey while she ate.

Once she was done finishing her soup, the two continued their conversations.

The topic of discussion this time around was sports, and Ben was quite surprised at how much Rey actually knew.

Granted, it wasn't much, but it was still better from other's girls that Ben had seen in the past.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Rey shot up from her bed and grabbed ahold of the waste bin next to her.

Ben sprung out of his seat and grabbed ahold of Rey's hair as she started to heave. Gently, he rubbed Rey's back with his free hand, hoping to relax her to the best of his ability.

Finally, after a minute, Rey emptied her stomach contents into the waste bin.

Peering into the bucket before putting it beside Rey, Ben was able to notice the soup she had consumed the hour prior.

Gripped with shock once more, Rey's body shaked as sweat started to billow down her forehead. Her temperature was starting to spike again.

 _I feel like I'm dying..._ Rey irritated in her brain.

Rey was brought back into the world once Ben spoke, "Are you okay Rey? Is there anything I can get you?"

Ben's eyes were filled with worry.

Rey wanted to comfort him, and tell him that she was going to be fine, even though she felt like she was slowly dying.

She looked up at the man who was standing beside her bed before she closed her eyes as a new migraine started to form. Rey gritted her teeth together and groaned, "Ice… please…"

He nodded and rushed out of the room, down the stairs, and into the kitchen.

About a minute later, Ben arrived back in her room with an ice pack and a wet washcloth. He sat down next to her on the bed, and delicately placed the ice pack on her forehead while he wiped some of the sweat off of her neck and cheeks.

Rey let out a whimper while she squinted her eyes shut as another wave of nausea hit.

With worried and concerned eyes, Ben stopped wiping her face with the washcloth and instead placed his hand there, while rubbing little circles on her cheek with his thumb while saying softly, "Shhh… Shhh… Everything is going to be fine."

As if by magic, the wave ceased to exist, and Rey sighed a breath of relief. She opened her eyes to see Ben sitting besides her, with a faint smile on his lips as he looked down into her hazel eyes.

She looked up at his eyes before turning her head away in embarrassment, "I hate having you see me like this."

Ben hesitated for a second before grabbing the washcloth again to wipe away a stray piece of sweat, "And why is that?"

Rey shrugged, in hopes she didn't need to spill her feelings to the boy sitting on her bed.

He chuckled a bit while putting the washcloth back down, "You're not getting away that easy. Come on Rey… Talk to me."

She laid there for a few moments, contemplating what to say.

Does she tell him that it's absolutely insane he's sitting there on her bed, getting exposed to all of the bacteria she's admitting into the world?

Why was she worth getting sick over?

Especially during football season when playoffs were coming up.

Most men were sick and tired of her after the first date.

But there was Ben, sitting on the edge of her bed while snot dripped out of her nose, and planted right on his face was the goofy looking smile she had come to adore.

Rey looked like she had been hit by a train, but he could care less.

Why?

Rey sighed before opening her mouth, "Ben… I've loved talking to you these last few hours... But you should have left once you dropped off the flowers. God knows every other sensible guy would have since I'm currently a gross and utter hot mess that could infect the entire city. The playoffs start in two weeks, and you can't afford to get sick because of me. Why are you still here?"

Ben sat back for a moment, trying to think of what to say next. Butterflies kept filling into his stomach knowing that she was so concerned about his own safety, but he didn't mind it one bit. After much silence passed between them, one of the biggest and most genuine smiles made its way across his features while he looked down at Rey to cup her cheek again. He rubbed small circles on her cheek while looking down into her forrest green eyes.

Finally he said, "Why not?"

* * *

 **Yay! This chapter is over! Thanks for reading!**

 **Hmmmm... is Ben going to get sick because of Rey? Who knows... (I actually do, Muuuwwaaahahahaha)**

 **If y'all liked it, let me know! :)**


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